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More than 11 percent of the company’s U.S. store transactions are handled with a mobile device, and that figure may double a year from now, Brotman said.

The firm is already investing heavily in internet connected coffee machines, and plans to double the number in stores.

The machines could receive the order from a customer's app and automatically program itself to make their perfect drink.

The firm hopes the app ordering system could reduce queues in store

Earlier this year, Starbucks said it plans to double the number of its Clover coffee-brewing machines, which connect to the cloud and track customer preferences, allow recipes to be digitally updated and help staffers remotely monitor a coffee maker’s performance.

It also said it was working on connected fridges that indicate when a carton of milk has spoiled.

'We are investing in different technologies to make it easier for our baristas,' Marianne Marck, a

senior vice president for the Seattle-based company, said in an interview.

It comes as Starbucks focuses on its future.

Last month, Chief Executive Officer Howard Schultz handed over day-to-day operations to Troy Alstead, chief operating officer, so he can focus on “next-generation” retail, digital and mobile payments, the company’s loyalty program and electronic commerce.